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Four Essential Considerations When You Don’t Know Which Way to Turn!

Avoiding the Rocks in the Journey of Life

It is easy to avoid the rocks of life when we can clearly see them. It is another challenge altogether when it feels like you are flying blind, knowing that there can be grave consequences if you make a wrong turn. Watch this amazing, somewhat frightening and beautiful video all the way to the end. Then read the actions that keep pilots safe and enable them to enjoy the beauty of a dangerous but rewarding journey. They will work for your life journey as well.

I piloted my own plane for many years. In Colorado I flew approaches not unlike the one you just watched. It was exhilarating. There was a secret to doing it safely.

My view of Mt Harvard from 14,500 ft

Know exactly where you are going. To fly in the clouds without knowing your destination is an invitation to certain disaster. If you have your sights set on clear purpose and destination for your life, that focus can direct you to make the right turns in life as well as quickly correct a wrong turn.

Know exactly how you will get there. A destination remains an impossible dream until you determine a route that will get you there. As a pilot, I would program my destination and each leg of the flight into my auto pilot. Careful planning of my route assured that I would avoid the obstacles that could lead to a crash

Depend on the instruments. Once my plane entered the clouds I had to have faith in my plan and depend totally on the instruments that would show every step of my route. There were times when my feelings told me to turn and my instruments told me to keep a steady course.

Over the years I learned that there was a name for pilots who ignored their instruments and “flew by the seat of their pants.” They were called “Headlines!”

Listen to the people who know where you are and where you are headed. Pilots call these people “air traffic controllers.” These professionals have three pieces of information necessary for a safe flight:

They knew exactly where you are.

They know exactly where you are headed.

They know exactly what actions you need to take to reach your destination safely.

As a pilot when I followed these guidelines, fear was transformed into freedom to enjoy the beauty of the journey. Very few things I have experienced match the thrill of breaking out of the clouds and seeing the runway in front of me.

Here’s something to think about:

Do you know where you are going?

Do you have a plan to get there?

Is your purpose and plan strong enough to bet your life on?

Do you have trustworthy friends who know where you are and can help guide you to the runway?

Your comments are not only welcome they are often helpful to those of us who are trying to avoid some of the same rocks along our journey.

2 thoughts on “Four Essential Considerations When You Don’t Know Which Way to Turn!”

Very nice! Another analogy of life I found that relates to flying, at least VFR flying, is simply the freedom to choose the destination and the route. In life, God’s free will largely govern both, much as it is in flying. There are many routes to get to any given destination or goal, some of those are fraught with peril, some are even against the laws of men, some are beautiful and exhilerating, some are peaceful, some are right, some are wrong. In flying, I listen to the inner voice that guides me; in life I listen to the voice of the Lord Jesus Christ. Anytime I stop doing either, I can expect uncertainty at best or disaster at worst, and any of these outcomes are fraught with anxiety and unwanted consequences. I find as I get older I seriously dislike anxiety in any form, and much prefer the inner peace that comes with believing I truly am under the watchful eyes of God.